NihontoWatchCharacteristics: Horii Toshihide, whose real name was Horii Kaneyoshi, used the first mei of Kaneaki; in Meiji 37 he became a pupil of Horii Taneyoshi's son, Horii Yutaneaki, and in Meiji 44 he became the adopted son and son-in-law of Taneaki. Later, he became the third generation of the Horii school, and in Taisho 2 he was granted the name Hideaki, taking the character Hide from Suishinshi Masahide, by the Token Hozonkai; in Taisho 7 he moved to Hokkaido to join the Japan Steel Works Muroran Plant upon their invitation, and in Showa 8, because the Crown Prince was born and named "Prince Akihito," he changed his name to Toshihide out of deference to this. Horii Toshihide was a swordsmith representing the Taisho and early Showa eras who forged gunto for Prince Chichibu, Prince Takamatsu, and Prince Higashikuni, as well as tanto bestowed by the Imperial Household Ministry. In the Seidai Tosho Iretsu, he was ranked at the highest level, Shinpin no Retsu, and was a swordsmith awarded the titles of Saijo Owazamono, Torishimariyaku-kaku Hitto, and Kokko. This work is of excellent quality and has received Tokubetsu Hozon.
Certificate reading — 銘 修文練武身命奉還俊秀作（堀井俊秀） 昭和十七年三月吉日 為北原英気子
NihontoWatchOffered by Samurai Shokai
5 on the market
Machine translation from the shop's Japanese · may contain errors ·
Hokkaido · around 1926-1989
5 pieces on the market now
Where Toshihide stands among comparable artisans: across all of nihontō, and within tradition, era, and period. The tiers (Foremost · Leading · Major · Notable) weigh official designations from the NBTHK and Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs, together with historical honors of lasting repute such as the Sansaku and Meibutsu-chō.
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Shōwa to the present: destruction and revival
The twentieth century nearly killed the craft twice: wartime distortion, then the occupation ban. The NBTHK’s founding in 1948 and licensed forging from 1953 rebuilt the sword as an art, crowned by Living National Treasures and the mukansa rank.
A Hozon-certified blade judged to show notably superior workmanship and a better state of preservation. The bar is higher: re-tempered blades and most unsigned Muromachi/Edo works are excluded.
The NBTHK (Nihon Bijutsu Tōken Hozon Kyōkai, the Society for the Preservation of Japanese Art Swords) is a public-interest incorporated foundation founded in 1948 and supervised by Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs (Bunkachō); it is based at the Japanese Sword Museum in Tokyo. Its expert panels physically examine each submitted work (shinsa) and issue a certificate (kanteishō) ranking it by artistic and historical merit. NBTHK papers are the most widely recognized standard of authentication for Japanese swords and fittings.
NBTHK official siteReturns are possible within 3 days of the item's arrival; however, cooling-off may not apply if any of the notes below applies. Notes: - The item's condition differs from the time of sale - 3 or more days have passed since the item's arrival - A trade-in item was part of the purchase - Items delivered overseas cannot be returned - The item was purchased in our shop - Return shipping and the bank transfer fee for the refund are at the customer's expense Please also note that bank transfer fees, credit card fees and cash-on-delivery fees cannot be refunded. (Refunds for credit card, cash-on-delivery and similar payments are made after the payment has reached us.)
¥600,000